I've been conversing with Mark Brady a lot lately. We've had some great conversations (email & phone)... well, it is mostly me listening intently - that guy is even more interesting on the phone. I'm really learning a lot of new stuff and have been enjoying the discussions immensely.
One of the subjects we hit on the other day was something Mark brought up about how markets aren't markets anymore. Markets used to be where people who made stuff would go to sell their goods. It is also where people went to buy stuff, see new things, learn stuff, talk to other people, etc, etc.
I shared with Mark the following story from the book 'e-topia: Urban Life, Jim - BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT'.
"Long ago, there was a desert village with a well at its center. The houses clustered within a distance that a jar of water could comfortably be carried. In the cool of the evening the people came to the well to collect the next days supply of water, and they lingered there to exchange gossip and conduct business with one another. The well supplied a scarce and necessary resource, and in doing so also became the social center - the gathering place that held the community together.""Then, the piped water supply came. Who could deny the practical advantages? It was more convenient, and the kids no longer got cholera. Population grew, and the village expanded into a large town, since houses could be supplied with water wherever pipes could run."
"Dwellings no longer had to concentrate themselves in the old center. And the people ceased to gather at the well, since they could get water anytime, anyplace. So the space around the wellhead lost its ancient communal function, and the people invented some new, more up-to-date and specialized sites for socializing - a piazza, a market, a cafe."
But, as Mark so eloquently points out, we no longer really have those things... we've got LinkedIn, Drive-Thrus, and Wal-Mart.... or something like that. So, we started talking about those modern conveniences:
Today I can....
Self-scan mass-produced goods at the grocery store...
Order my books and pizza online...
Email my parents as well as "the customer service" department...
Instant Message my friends...
Pay-at-the-pump for a tank of unleaded...
Get OnDemand movies from my cable company...
Use my EZPass to get on the turnpike...
Direct-Deposit my paycheck and use an ATM to get cash...
And pretty soon, I'll be able to order a Big Mac from a kiosk (I'm sure it will "prompt" me to order fries)...
When was the last time you really dealt with another human being? When was the last time you met the person actually made the goods you purchase?
Speaking of which, did you ever see the show on HGTV called Modern Masters?
"Each episode of Modern Masters takes viewers to workshops around the country to observe master craftsmen and women demonstrating their trades, whether blacksmith or plaster caster, mural artist or potter. As the featured artisans bring stone, metal, glass and wood to life, they share their methods and their enjoyment of the results. Viewers gain insight, inspiration and confidence from watching the pros at work."
I wonder how many of us, in the hustle an bustle of "work", are like the craftsmen/artisans they feature on that show?
Probably not many. And the reason is that we're too busy building spreadsheets, writing code, defining processes, constructing Power Point presentations, ad-infinitum. We aren't out with customers. We don't get to see how the work we're doing is making their lives better.
I'm going to start calling this the Six Degrees of Separation Syndrome. The idea is that the more degrees away from the customer you are, the less meaningful the job. The less meaningful from both a worth to the company standpoint as well as a satisfaction standpoint.
Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy all of these modern conveniences - they do make living much easier, but I've come to depend on them to such an extent that I'm wondering what the cost of that is.
Nice post, Jon. I especially think that with this increased potential for separation that the means we develop and/or leverage to keep in touch with our customers must received increased focus. An important question becomes -- are the ways of increasing our customer feedback loops helping us from really having six degrees of separation? Technology and other business practices have helped fill some of this gap. Check out my latest post on Blue Lizard for some thoughts (http://deepspace.typepad.com/blue_lizard/2004/05/customer_feedba.html)
Posted by: Ted Bozarth | May 11, 2004 at 08:19 PM